Boosting Performance Through Creative Surgery

Jaguar E-Type with a 1JZ

Charlie’s Classic & Custom Body & Paint Shop in Somerset, UK has spent the past 18 months in the evenings and on weekends turning a Jaguar E-Type Series 1 into an amazing drift car. Purists can take comfort that the team didn’t start with a good donor or even a complete one. They actually started with separate front and back pieces that were pretty far gone. Very few restorers would have worked with these.

Under the hood sits a 1JZ-GTE connected to a single GReddy T67 turbocharger that produces 480 horsepower and 490 lb-ft of torque. The original plans were to use a Nissan RB-series engine but they had a 1JZ laying around and decided to save some money using something they already had. The engine is connected to a BMW E46 330d five-speed transmission via a ABC-Clutch adapter kit. Out back a BMW E60 M5 rear end handles power to the rear wheels.

The car still needs some finishing touches before you actually see it on the track. But rest assured it will be going sideways soon and you can expect to see a lot more internet coverage over the coming months of this unique Jaguar.